I'm a cheapskate at heart, so I'm always happy to hear of new productivity enhancements that are either free or nearly so. Google's new online suite of office applications - Google Aps - made me a happy camper almost immediately.
Google Aps combines a MS Office-type work environment, with word processing, spreadsheet, calendaring, domain-specific email (like margyr@virtualhelper.biz!) and instant messaging and internet telephony via Google Talk. It's free, completely and entirely (unless you'd like the Premiere edition. Then it's a whopping $50 per year). It's also extremely easy to use: if you can figure out Microsoft Word or Excel, you can use Google's Docs & Spreadsheets. It has fewer bells and whistles, but I think it's the perfect product for any small business that needs to land (and stay) on its feet with a minimum of expense and fuss.
I'm particularly fond of the fact that I can store my work online and bring it down from the internet wherever I happen to be (assuming there's an internet connection, of course). Not only that, everything is in one place. I'm writing this on my Google word processor (with spell check and auto save!). When it's ready I'll press a button to publish it to my (Google) blog, where you can all read it. If I need to share my opus with others prior to publishing I can do that, too. Like so many other Web 2.0 applications, it's completely collaborative - and easily so. I can start draft I of my marketing newsletter and other writers can pick up where I left off. If we need to check our budget for the aforementioned project, all I need do is click on the "spreadsheets" part of Google Docs & Spreadsheets and we can all do the same thing.
Like all good internet office productivity suites, Google Aps also comes with a calendaring application and chat. I haven't used these as much, since I've been using other services for these. If they're as good as Docs & Spreadsheets, though, I'd be comfortable recommending them sight unseen.
Before you go running off to download these nifty applications, bear in mind that there are other online office suites out there too. I've recently created an account on Zoho, which includes all of the Google programs plus a rudimentary database, Wiki software (don't worry, I'll be explaining that soon enough), project management software and more. There's also the powerful Open Office with even more fun stuff. And, Open Office is open source, which means that programmers and developers can snatch the source code (i.e., brains) and modify it as necessary for your specific business needs.
These online applications are just too good to pass over. Check them out today!
Google Aps: https://www.google.com/a/
Zoho: http://www.zoho.com/
Open Office: http://www.openoffice.org/
Monday, June 25, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Here We Go A'Blogging
I'm a blogging junkie. I have accounts on almost all of the major blogging services: WordPress, Blogger, Vox, Live Journal, Xanga, Podbean, Podcastpeople and TypePad. Some I use regularly, others have yet to see more than the light of day. It depends on the need, my mood and - in some cases - on the others in my blog "neighborhood." Most of these services are either free (at least in their basic form) or extremely inexpensive.
As far as I'm concerned, bogging is the poster child of Web 2.0. For those not in the know, Web 2.0 is a catch-all phrase describing the "new," interactive generation of internet use. If you've heard of YouTube, Wikipedia or MySpace, for example, you're already familiar with the concept. You can interact with others in a number of ways and they can interact with you. You can post your videos or audios online where others can see and/or hear it. They can rate your posts and send you theirs. You can tell others as little or as much as you'd like and they can do the same. It brings the concept of "community" to an entirely new level (although not always a healthy or safe one).
I use blogs primarily for my public and private writing projects. I can collaborate with other writers. Everything is on one place in a blog. It's there forever (or for as long as you want it there) and your chosen group of readers or writers can access it and add to it.
Most of my fiction writing projects are on WordPress, which allows me to have multiple authors and multiple blogs on my one account. Since we've already got outlines for seven novels, I can add additional blogs as needed to accommodate them. I also have a private blog on WordPress, along with some humorous ones that are open to the public.
On the other hand, I use Blogger for my family blogs. I love this type of blogging and have a blog for my immediate family in Buffalo, NY (I'm in Boston, MA) and for my husband's family as well. These are invitation-only blogs, to protect privacy.
Why did I choose WordPress for one and Blogger for the other? Chance, mostly, as well as features. Both WordPress as well as Blogger allow me to create more than one blog per account and also to have multiple blog authors. That was my main criteria.
I also have some "neighborhood" type blogs. These are a bit more social in nature, akin to some of the social networking sites like MySpace. In this case, however, the activity is centered on the blog postings. From there you can "friend" others (i.e., add them to your friends lists), join groups and in general create a little community of like-minded users. It's one more way of getting to know people around this little world of ours. I have accounts on Live Journal, Xanga and on Vox for these purposes. Go ahead: click on the links. You're welcome to have a look!
At some point in the near future I'll be writing about audio and video blogging as well. For now, here's an introduction to the subject:
Gabcast! Blog Updates #1
As far as I'm concerned, bogging is the poster child of Web 2.0. For those not in the know, Web 2.0 is a catch-all phrase describing the "new," interactive generation of internet use. If you've heard of YouTube, Wikipedia or MySpace, for example, you're already familiar with the concept. You can interact with others in a number of ways and they can interact with you. You can post your videos or audios online where others can see and/or hear it. They can rate your posts and send you theirs. You can tell others as little or as much as you'd like and they can do the same. It brings the concept of "community" to an entirely new level (although not always a healthy or safe one).
I use blogs primarily for my public and private writing projects. I can collaborate with other writers. Everything is on one place in a blog. It's there forever (or for as long as you want it there) and your chosen group of readers or writers can access it and add to it.
Most of my fiction writing projects are on WordPress, which allows me to have multiple authors and multiple blogs on my one account. Since we've already got outlines for seven novels, I can add additional blogs as needed to accommodate them. I also have a private blog on WordPress, along with some humorous ones that are open to the public.
On the other hand, I use Blogger for my family blogs. I love this type of blogging and have a blog for my immediate family in Buffalo, NY (I'm in Boston, MA) and for my husband's family as well. These are invitation-only blogs, to protect privacy.
Why did I choose WordPress for one and Blogger for the other? Chance, mostly, as well as features. Both WordPress as well as Blogger allow me to create more than one blog per account and also to have multiple blog authors. That was my main criteria.
I also have some "neighborhood" type blogs. These are a bit more social in nature, akin to some of the social networking sites like MySpace. In this case, however, the activity is centered on the blog postings. From there you can "friend" others (i.e., add them to your friends lists), join groups and in general create a little community of like-minded users. It's one more way of getting to know people around this little world of ours. I have accounts on Live Journal, Xanga and on Vox for these purposes. Go ahead: click on the links. You're welcome to have a look!
At some point in the near future I'll be writing about audio and video blogging as well. For now, here's an introduction to the subject:
Gabcast! Blog Updates #1
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Get a (Virtual) Life
About a year ago I joined a Yahoo! user group, for a popular television show. I was unhappy with the direction the series was taking and was relieved to find a community of others who felt the same way. I didn't join it to promote my business, or to develop business relationships. I joined it because I needed an outlet for my frustration.
As time went by I became more and more involved with the group. It was a place to vent and to laugh. I was in regular touch with a community of people - mostly women - and felt myself developing relationships with them. I didn't know any of them in person. I didn't know who they were, where they lived, what they looked or sounded like. In some cases I didn't even know their real names. All I knew was that I really looking forward to reading the posts and to writing them.
There were a lot of "fan fiction" writers in the group. I've never been particularly interested in this genre, but took the occasional look at it before returning to the ongoing board discussions. As time went by, I came to recognize the groups's leaders: people who posted regularly and to whom people turned for advice. One person in particular met this criteria. She was on the board all the time and seemed to have an "in" at the network on which the show aired. She wrote a great deal of fan fiction and, I later discovered, had a wicked funny bone.
This person also had a blog - weblog, that is - along with a few others. At some point along the way I started doing something I never thought I'd do again - write fiction. In my case, since I also have a wicked funny bone, I wrote a satire. I thought it was cute, so I posted it to the "Files" section of the site, where other writers had also posted.
The response was immediate. They loved it. They howled with laughter. "Margy, Margy, Margy!" wrote one, the same de facto "leader" of the group mentioned above. "Clap, clap, clap!" Another wrote "OMG...that was hilarious!" It met a need. I found a humorous way of making the television show do what I wanted it to do. Everybody who read it came away with the same laughter and relief.
And, I got posted to someone else's blog. Other people read it. Other people liked it.
A few weeks later, our groups's fearless leader posted a series of stories she'd written. They were imaginary interviews with each of the characters on the television show. I remember reading them and laughing so hard I couldn't breathe. I sat in front of my computer screen and roared, with tears rolling down my eyes.
I posted her stories to my blog.
Do you catch where I'm going here? I had developed a series of relationships, not at all business related (or so I thought at the time), with people I'd never met in person. We were like a little family. We looked out for each other. We held each others' hands. We made each other laugh.
A few months later I found out the "fearless leader" of our group was blind. She'd never mentioned it and in one post casually said at some point her remaining vision would go. Then, "lights out."
The news hit me like a punch in the stomach. I had no idea. I had developed a fondness for her, as one funny writer to another, albeit in completely different genres. At some point, last October, she posted a link to a birthday card she'd received from a friend in Britain. I decided to send her a birthday wish of my own, with a little ditty I made up. She posted back, roaring with laughter and throwing out something funny of her own. We did that all day. By the end of it I was practically on the floor and so was she. From that point on, we were pals.
But, she was blind - or well on the way. I wondered if there were any way to set things up so she hear my posts and emails rather than see them. I love tinkering with computers and I spent an incredibly long time finding information about audio blogging. I tested out a variety of options, some of which worked for her and some of which didn't. In my search for a "play" button that was big enough for her to see I discovered YouTube, even though that's a video service. I set up a blog for her with her favorite fan videos and jokes. And, as time went by, she told me more and more about her life. It wasn't all funny. Sometimes she was fine. Sometimes she found the isolation and frustration imposed by her blindness to be more than she could bear. I began to know the whole person, someone I'd never formally "met."
I'm closer to her than I am to a lot of people I see all the time. We email or video chat every day. We laugh and cry together. I "know" her friends and she "knows" mine. I started writing mystery fiction. One of the characters - you guessed it - is blind, and very funny - most of the time.
None of this would have happened without that Yahoo! group. I now know about audio and video blogging on different platforms because of my quest to make her online experience easier. I also developed an interested in adaptive (special needs) software for blind/low vision users. I discovered Google's online suite of applications while trying to find a way we could work on the stories collaboratively. I ended up using a blog instead, but later set up a second business using the same Google software I'd earlier discovered.
She's also a customer, by the way. I sent her a Christmas present last December: an assortment of foods from my business. She loved a German cake so much she bought out my remaining stocks. She had me send cakes to her friends and her family. She has already let me know that I'd better order more this Christmas! Granted, she didn't buy the cakes just because she was my friend. She bought them because she liked them. But - she wouldn't have been my customer if she wasn't my friend first. I never would have thought to send her that gift.
From an unknown poster to a customer, a writing collaborator and one of my best friends. That's virtual networking for you. It happens on its own, when you give enough of yourself for others to grab onto. Relationships these days have gone beyond the physical realm. Try it for yourself and see how this works. I never would have expected it.
By the way, my blind friend and I will be meeting each other for the first time in person this October!
As time went by I became more and more involved with the group. It was a place to vent and to laugh. I was in regular touch with a community of people - mostly women - and felt myself developing relationships with them. I didn't know any of them in person. I didn't know who they were, where they lived, what they looked or sounded like. In some cases I didn't even know their real names. All I knew was that I really looking forward to reading the posts and to writing them.
There were a lot of "fan fiction" writers in the group. I've never been particularly interested in this genre, but took the occasional look at it before returning to the ongoing board discussions. As time went by, I came to recognize the groups's leaders: people who posted regularly and to whom people turned for advice. One person in particular met this criteria. She was on the board all the time and seemed to have an "in" at the network on which the show aired. She wrote a great deal of fan fiction and, I later discovered, had a wicked funny bone.
This person also had a blog - weblog, that is - along with a few others. At some point along the way I started doing something I never thought I'd do again - write fiction. In my case, since I also have a wicked funny bone, I wrote a satire. I thought it was cute, so I posted it to the "Files" section of the site, where other writers had also posted.
The response was immediate. They loved it. They howled with laughter. "Margy, Margy, Margy!" wrote one, the same de facto "leader" of the group mentioned above. "Clap, clap, clap!" Another wrote "OMG...that was hilarious!" It met a need. I found a humorous way of making the television show do what I wanted it to do. Everybody who read it came away with the same laughter and relief.
And, I got posted to someone else's blog. Other people read it. Other people liked it.
A few weeks later, our groups's fearless leader posted a series of stories she'd written. They were imaginary interviews with each of the characters on the television show. I remember reading them and laughing so hard I couldn't breathe. I sat in front of my computer screen and roared, with tears rolling down my eyes.
I posted her stories to my blog.
Do you catch where I'm going here? I had developed a series of relationships, not at all business related (or so I thought at the time), with people I'd never met in person. We were like a little family. We looked out for each other. We held each others' hands. We made each other laugh.
A few months later I found out the "fearless leader" of our group was blind. She'd never mentioned it and in one post casually said at some point her remaining vision would go. Then, "lights out."
The news hit me like a punch in the stomach. I had no idea. I had developed a fondness for her, as one funny writer to another, albeit in completely different genres. At some point, last October, she posted a link to a birthday card she'd received from a friend in Britain. I decided to send her a birthday wish of my own, with a little ditty I made up. She posted back, roaring with laughter and throwing out something funny of her own. We did that all day. By the end of it I was practically on the floor and so was she. From that point on, we were pals.
But, she was blind - or well on the way. I wondered if there were any way to set things up so she hear my posts and emails rather than see them. I love tinkering with computers and I spent an incredibly long time finding information about audio blogging. I tested out a variety of options, some of which worked for her and some of which didn't. In my search for a "play" button that was big enough for her to see I discovered YouTube, even though that's a video service. I set up a blog for her with her favorite fan videos and jokes. And, as time went by, she told me more and more about her life. It wasn't all funny. Sometimes she was fine. Sometimes she found the isolation and frustration imposed by her blindness to be more than she could bear. I began to know the whole person, someone I'd never formally "met."
I'm closer to her than I am to a lot of people I see all the time. We email or video chat every day. We laugh and cry together. I "know" her friends and she "knows" mine. I started writing mystery fiction. One of the characters - you guessed it - is blind, and very funny - most of the time.
None of this would have happened without that Yahoo! group. I now know about audio and video blogging on different platforms because of my quest to make her online experience easier. I also developed an interested in adaptive (special needs) software for blind/low vision users. I discovered Google's online suite of applications while trying to find a way we could work on the stories collaboratively. I ended up using a blog instead, but later set up a second business using the same Google software I'd earlier discovered.
She's also a customer, by the way. I sent her a Christmas present last December: an assortment of foods from my business. She loved a German cake so much she bought out my remaining stocks. She had me send cakes to her friends and her family. She has already let me know that I'd better order more this Christmas! Granted, she didn't buy the cakes just because she was my friend. She bought them because she liked them. But - she wouldn't have been my customer if she wasn't my friend first. I never would have thought to send her that gift.
From an unknown poster to a customer, a writing collaborator and one of my best friends. That's virtual networking for you. It happens on its own, when you give enough of yourself for others to grab onto. Relationships these days have gone beyond the physical realm. Try it for yourself and see how this works. I never would have expected it.
By the way, my blind friend and I will be meeting each other for the first time in person this October!
Navigating the Web Without Sight
I have two very good friends who are blind, either mostly or totally. I got to know them both through a variety of Yahoo! groups. Because of my friendship with them I've become increasingly interested in "adaptive software." This is a buzz word for software designed for people with specific disabilities. Since my friends are blind, I'm mostly familiar with software designed for people with this disability.
I've had a look and listen to two software readers: JAWS (an industry standard and do-all) and Zoom Text, which combines a screen reader and magnifier for low-vision users.
I was completely befuddled by JAWS, which requires some training to use properly. I'm sure I could learn it if I put my mind to it. At this point, however, I no longer have the demo version to play around with. Assuming I load it again, I'll give you an update.
I've had more success as a "duh" user with Zoom Text and find it quite easy to use. Of course, my vision is normal so I couldn't honestly say I'm coming into this as a typical user. However, one of my two blind friends uses this program and loves it.
I especially like the voice synthesizers, which had me rolling on the floor when I first heard them. They try to be life-like and, to a certain extent, they are. But, only to a certain extent. Still, it's a very sophisticated and well designed program and I like it. I'm very glad these tools exist. A disability can be very isolating. The web has provided a lot of people with access to the outside world and people with visual disabilities should not be excluded from this means of connecting.
I've had a look and listen to two software readers: JAWS (an industry standard and do-all) and Zoom Text, which combines a screen reader and magnifier for low-vision users.
I was completely befuddled by JAWS, which requires some training to use properly. I'm sure I could learn it if I put my mind to it. At this point, however, I no longer have the demo version to play around with. Assuming I load it again, I'll give you an update.
I've had more success as a "duh" user with Zoom Text and find it quite easy to use. Of course, my vision is normal so I couldn't honestly say I'm coming into this as a typical user. However, one of my two blind friends uses this program and loves it.
I especially like the voice synthesizers, which had me rolling on the floor when I first heard them. They try to be life-like and, to a certain extent, they are. But, only to a certain extent. Still, it's a very sophisticated and well designed program and I like it. I'm very glad these tools exist. A disability can be very isolating. The web has provided a lot of people with access to the outside world and people with visual disabilities should not be excluded from this means of connecting.
Skype Me?
We've all heard of internet telephony services, known in the geek world as VoIP. Basically, these services allow two users to instant message, telephone each other and leave voicemail and - in some cases - video chat as well.
I'm particularly fond of Skype, which has a presence in most countries around the world. I have a friend in Baltimore with whom I constantly communicate. It would cost us a fortune in telephone bills if we used traditional telephone services. To avoid this expensive scenario, we started audio and video chatting using our computers. We started with Yahoo Instant Messaging, but found the quality of the video choppy. Next, we switched to MSN Messenger and found that to be better. Unfortunately, we're both incredible blabber mouths and after an hour we got cut off. Now, for us an hour is barely enough time for us to warm up. At that point I suggested Skype. It had been recommended to me by a techie friend in Ontario although I'd never tried it.
I'll never go back to anything else. My friend and I could connect via video, voice and chat and we could blab for as long as we wanted. And blab we did - sometimes three or four hours at a time.
The cost? Nothing. Just as long as both users are on the same system the calls are free, to anywhere in the world. You can also call traditional land lines for a bit more. In this case, Skype is a bargain as well. I have Unlimited Skype Out. I can talk to anyone, on any phone, in the US and Canada. I can talk for as long as I want and the sound quality is wonderful. I pay US $29.99 per year for the privilege.
I think Skype (along with other internet telephony services) are worth looking into. In addition to Skype, you can also check out Yahoo! and Google which have voice and video capability. AOL also has a messenger service which probably has the same features, although I don't know for sure. Finally, I'm also familiar with Gizmo, which has a similar suite of applications for free/low cost internet communication. I'll post more about these various services, but for now wanted to introduce you to at least some of them.
I'm particularly fond of Skype, which has a presence in most countries around the world. I have a friend in Baltimore with whom I constantly communicate. It would cost us a fortune in telephone bills if we used traditional telephone services. To avoid this expensive scenario, we started audio and video chatting using our computers. We started with Yahoo Instant Messaging, but found the quality of the video choppy. Next, we switched to MSN Messenger and found that to be better. Unfortunately, we're both incredible blabber mouths and after an hour we got cut off. Now, for us an hour is barely enough time for us to warm up. At that point I suggested Skype. It had been recommended to me by a techie friend in Ontario although I'd never tried it.
I'll never go back to anything else. My friend and I could connect via video, voice and chat and we could blab for as long as we wanted. And blab we did - sometimes three or four hours at a time.
The cost? Nothing. Just as long as both users are on the same system the calls are free, to anywhere in the world. You can also call traditional land lines for a bit more. In this case, Skype is a bargain as well. I have Unlimited Skype Out. I can talk to anyone, on any phone, in the US and Canada. I can talk for as long as I want and the sound quality is wonderful. I pay US $29.99 per year for the privilege.
I think Skype (along with other internet telephony services) are worth looking into. In addition to Skype, you can also check out Yahoo! and Google which have voice and video capability. AOL also has a messenger service which probably has the same features, although I don't know for sure. Finally, I'm also familiar with Gizmo, which has a similar suite of applications for free/low cost internet communication. I'll post more about these various services, but for now wanted to introduce you to at least some of them.
Fascinations
I'm fascinated by so many things, computers among them. I love to write and have a zillion blogs. I have an established business and a new one on the way. I use the internet and my computer to design, market and run them both.
I've decided to give my hand a try at the "virtual office" business. With so many applications now free and available online, it's easier than ever to collaborate and communicate. There are no Mac vs. PC squabbles in this environment. "Virtual" workers don't need extra space in an office, since they can work from any location with a computer connection.
I just took a look at Google's new suite of office applications. They're free to use and can be shared by many users. I just set up a domain for my newest venture - Your Virtual Helper - for a grand total of $10.00. The email is free. The applications and communications capabilities are free. Granted, it's still a bit buggy and in a newish stage, but the technology and logistic smarts will mature soon enough. I have a feeling this is going to be the wave of the future. I may migrate the New Europe Marketplace to this platform at some point soon - although I'm quite happy with my current set of services on Yahoo.
Let me know what you think of all this. I'm fascinated, but then again I'm a geek wannabe. If I can type it onto a computer screen, it's got my heart!
I've decided to give my hand a try at the "virtual office" business. With so many applications now free and available online, it's easier than ever to collaborate and communicate. There are no Mac vs. PC squabbles in this environment. "Virtual" workers don't need extra space in an office, since they can work from any location with a computer connection.
I just took a look at Google's new suite of office applications. They're free to use and can be shared by many users. I just set up a domain for my newest venture - Your Virtual Helper - for a grand total of $10.00. The email is free. The applications and communications capabilities are free. Granted, it's still a bit buggy and in a newish stage, but the technology and logistic smarts will mature soon enough. I have a feeling this is going to be the wave of the future. I may migrate the New Europe Marketplace to this platform at some point soon - although I'm quite happy with my current set of services on Yahoo.
Let me know what you think of all this. I'm fascinated, but then again I'm a geek wannabe. If I can type it onto a computer screen, it's got my heart!
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